Why the Hyperloop is impossible in practice [video]

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9 points·wdrw··4 comments

Ok, did not watch the video completely but it seems mostly about the low pressure requirements. It seems that the author does not realize that hyperloop is not a vacuum tube but a low-pressure environment. Actually the pod depends on surrounding air to create the air cushion it drives on.

Also, the way to mitigate earthquakes and thermal expansion are (albeit vaguely) mentioned in the alpha document: the tube rests on pylons and the overall structure deforms slightly.

http://www.spacex.com/sites/spacex/files/hyperloop_alpha-201...

He is aware but according to the alpha document it says 100Pa, which does seem insanely low. All his points seem like very valid concerns, and certainly points that should have had answers before vast sums of money where pumped into the project.

"All his points" are basically the one point repeated for 26 of the 28 minutes video.

Well, if I am not mistaken, this pressure has been tested on the kind of tube to be used. Also I think it extremely misleading that he compares the total volume of hyperloop and of the NASA vacuum chamber. It makes it feel he does not understand what he is talking about.

It makes almost no difference if the tube is 20 m long or 200 km long. If a small section of the tube can withhold the pressure a long section can as well. And thinking we can't make a low pressure environment in a tube that's a few meters of diameter is... weird.

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